At this moment, it was not only them undergoing unknown mutations. The entire world was mutating. In less than a minute, the whole Earth had descended into chaos, as though even the air contained particles called fear...
Mu Xiao did not need to guess to know what drastic changes were taking place in the world, but he had no time to think about anything else. His greatest problem was how to escape.
There were thirty guards in the secret chamber, while there was only one prisoner locked inside the iron cage. She was the person Mu Xiao both anticipated and feared. Fortunately, she showed no signs of evolving or mutating for the time being. Otherwise, Mu Xiao would have been the first to rush out of the chamber regardless of the consequences.
Mu Xiao broke free from the mutated guard's control. Fortunately, the guard's genes had changed so violently that his strength had suddenly gone out of balance. Mu Xiao seized that opportunity to break free, rolling straight behind three guards who had not mutated and using them to block the mutated guard.
"Those people have all been infected by a bioweapon virus—they're no longer human! Don't even think about subduing them! Kill them directly, or we're all dead!" Seeing the others trying to restrain those who had turned into monsters, Mu Xiao cried out anxiously in warning.
"Fuck your asshole! You want me to kill my own brothers? I'll kill you first later!" A brawny man with a bull-like head cursed in a rough voice, making Mu Xiao so angry he nearly spat blood. He blamed himself for being too kindhearted and decided to ignore whether these people lived or died. He would first deal with the electronic lock on his handcuffs, then find a chance to release the person imprisoned in the iron cage.
Nearly half the people in the secret chamber had undergone genetic mutation, but the guards did not immediately kill their companions. Instead, they used restraint weapons such as electromagnetic guns, stun batons, and electric gloves to attack them. However, the mutated people's resistance had greatly increased. It was not so easy to shock them unconscious. In fact, they would not lose consciousness at all, because their pain nerves were already gone. The only way was to electrocute them into charred ashes... in other words, kill them.
The secret chamber was in chaos as the unmutated guards busied themselves subduing their companions.
Mu Xiao curled up like a rat and moved cautiously, trying to draw as little attention from the mutated guards as possible. He returned to where the guard who had seized him was, found the man's torn clothing, and successfully located the handcuff controller. At the same time, he found a Laser Pistol and a Scorching Saber. Both were excellent B-grade weapons, more than enough to deal with zombies with First-Stage Genetic Mutation.
It would be another matter if a Mutant Human appeared among these guards.
Next, Mu Xiao cautiously headed toward the iron cage to free the woman he had always feared.
She wore a short-sleeved black outfit. Her white, smooth arms, like satin, held a thick book as she lowered her head and read.
Squatting in the corner of the iron cage, Mu Xiao carefully examined the person inside. Her expression remained in an extremely terrifying calm, without even the slightest emotional fluctuation, as though the chaos in the world could not stir her nerves.
"Greetings, esteemed one!" Mu Xiao instinctively used the respectful form of address he had once reserved for the strong. "I came to save you from danger..."
"No need." She raised her head, her deep black pupils like bottomless abysses as they stared directly into Mu Xiao's eyes.
For an instant, Mu Xiao felt as though his soul had been sucked into her eyes. His instincts reacted in that very moment. The Killing Pressure of his Veteran Evolution Level surged wildly, like an invisible bloodthirsty demon pouncing upon her Consciousness Sea and shattering her Hypnotic Eye Art.
Her brows furrowed slightly, her face turning several shades paler as a trace of pain appeared.
As the Federation's ace agent, she clearly knew some mental cultivation techniques and had learned to use her eyes to hypnotize others. If Mu Xiao had not possessed the pressure of a Veteran Evolution Level, he might very well have fallen under her hypnosis. As far as Mu Xiao knew, she possessed an SS-Rank Beyond-Human Physique. In hand-to-hand combat, she could knock down the current Mu Xiao with one hand.
However, Mu Xiao's Veteran Evolution Level pressure had struck back against her, causing a backlash of Mental Power and inflicting some mental damage upon her.
Because of this, Mu Xiao was able to clearly see her face and feel that she was not a monster now, but still a human.
Unlike in the future, she did not possess terrifying, boundless bloody malice, nor did she have a jade-like face that seemed capable of freezing all things. She also lacked those dark, cold, violently extreme eyes... Right now, she had skin like ice and snow, deep black pupils, thin lips, long black hair, uneven bangs, and an incomparably beautiful snow-white face marked by a cross-shaped scar.
The cross-shaped scar did not make her look ugly. Instead, it gave her a sharp, blade-like air that made others dare not underestimate her and filled them with fear.
At this moment, she no longer seemed like an inhuman, terrifying existence in Mu Xiao's eyes. Especially since his pressure had countered her, his mindset had shifted slightly.
Mu Xiao glanced once more at the cross-shaped scar on her cheek and thought, So she really did have this scar before evolving. But after she evolved, it seemed to disappear.
"Who are you?" she asked blandly, her willow-leaf brows slightly furrowed.
"Someone looking for you," Mu Xiao replied seriously. At the same time, he drew the Laser Pistol and fired beam after beam at the same spot, damaging the switch mechanism of the iron cage.
Now, Mu Xiao said he had come to find her, not save her.
She had already gathered a great deal of information from that.
"At your rate of destruction, they may all be killed before you have enough time to destroy the metal plate opening the backup lock," she said coldly.
Just as she had said, the genetically mutated guards were unharmed, while two or three of the unmutated guards had died. More than half their flesh had been devoured by the mutated guards, making those creatures even stronger. The normal guards who had not mutated were already in grave danger.
"They'll kill them in the end." Mu Xiao ignored the changing battle, focusing on shooting the metal plate. Then he suddenly asked, "Why did they imprison you in there?"
"Because I wanted to stop the New Human Plan. Unfortunately, I was still too late." A faint sorrow seeped into her words.
In the future Age of Evolution, she could never have shown such emotion.
But Mu Xiao did not notice the change in her emotions. Hearing that she had tried to stop the New Human Plan, his heart skipped a beat, causing one of his laser beams to veer slightly off target.
I never heard why she wanted to stop the New Human Plan, nor why she was imprisoned here... Could there be some hidden truth? Mu Xiao wondered.
"It seems you also know about the New Human Plan. There are changes and conspiracies within it that no one knows about." She gave Mu Xiao a serious look, then returned to staring expressionlessly at the bloody, frenzied battle outside. "Just like what you see before you now, the world's changes are also part of such a conspiracy."
Mu Xiao could hardly say, "In the future, you'll be countless times fiercer than them, and you'll also become a terrifying monster who kills without blinking."
The two fell silent. The battle in the secret chamber had also reached its fiercest stage. The unmutated guards began using lethal weapons, shooting their former companions full of holes. But Mu Xiao knew the genetically mutated guards were still not dead. Only by blasting their brains and hearts into pulp could they truly be killed.
Otherwise, those mutated guards would at most enter a temporary deathlike state. Once their mutated genes repaired their bodies, they would become indestructible monsters again.
As Mu Xiao continued firing, a vivid crimson bloodline appeared on her snow-white face. The moment Mu Xiao saw it, he was so startled that he nearly shot her in the head.
"Her first evolution has still begun!" Mu Xiao swallowed against his dry throat, sweeping his gaze around. Suddenly, his eyes lit up when he spotted an open metal cabinet containing A-grade heavy weapons. The guards must have opened it earlier to deal with the mutated guards.
"I'll be right back. Control your emotions first..." Mu Xiao hurried toward the metal cabinet.
How did he know my emotions were turning cold? A strange look appeared in her eyes. A silent, icy sensation surged within her again, making her unconsciously furrow her brows.
Mu Xiao quickly returned carrying an arm-sized cannon barrel.
"Haha... I actually found this antique!" Mu Xiao was delighted to find a familiar item from the late era so early in the world's development. This was the highly destructive Thunderbolt Cannon. A single shot could seriously injure even a Mutant Human, though its energy charge was rather slow. That was why the guards had not used this large weapon. Otherwise, one shot would have been enough to eliminate a genetically mutated guard.
"Water Bailan, step back a little. You'll be able to come out soon." Eager to try it out, Mu Xiao activated the Thunderbolt Cannon's charging switch and unconsciously spoke her name.
Water Bailan had always used code names or false names. Upon hearing Mu Xiao call her real name, known only to two people, her face instantly turned completely cold and sharp. Her tone was like a frigid wind from the underworld as she asked, "Why do you know my name is Water Bailan?"
Her cold voice, devoid of human emotion, made Mu Xiao feel as though he were standing naked atop an iceberg. The freezing wind seemed to cut into his marrow, sending a shudder through his entire body.
"She's your adoptive mother, so can't she also be my benefactor? Otherwise, how would I know you were here? How would I know about the New Human Plan? And I risked so much to come find you. Besides, your body is in terrible condition right now—you know that better than anyone. Hurry and control your emotions, or you'll completely lose your humanity and become a true killing weapon..."
In one breath, Mu Xiao spilled everything he remembered about Water Bailan's identity. Naturally, he did not dare reveal certain taboo matters at this time. Otherwise, Water Bailan's emotions would completely collapse, and just like in the future, she would become a terrifying killing weapon.
"What is her name?" Water Bailan's expression eased, but her skin became increasingly crystalline and icy. The crimson bloodlines that had emerged gradually turned blue.
"Water Deep Blue," Mu Xiao answered without hesitation.
"How did she become your benefactor?" Water Bailan asked.
"I haven't mutated yet. Don't you understand?" Mu Xiao replied flawlessly.
Water Bailan fell silent for a while, then said, "Something is wrong with my body. If anything happens to me, go back to the moon for me and take good care of my mother."
In her heart, her adoptive mother was her true mother. That was why, at this moment, she still cared about her family.
Bitterness filled Mu Xiao's heart as he thought, If this were some simple request, it would be fine. But this is something I can never promise!!
Before you continue